Bathtub Beauty: 1949 Packard Sedan
Unlike most other independent auto manufacturers, Packard survived the Depression by introducing a lower priced line of cars, the 120 model, in 1935. As many historians have noted, while this was a good, or even great short-term survival strategy,… more»
Split Personality : 1983 Datsun Maxima Wagon
Nissan Motors applied the Datsun brand name to its cars for many years (originally to distance the company from the fact that Nissan was a major military supplier during World War II). The Datsun name was, of course, extremely… more»
Project Rocket: 1953 Oldsmobile 88
With so many overpriced old cars for sale lately, and owners overselling cars with plenty of flaws, it’s a welcome relief when you run across a seller who not only asks a reasonable price, but admits the car’s problems… more»
Space Case: 1988 Isuzu Spacecab pick up
Isuzu has been one of the few Japanese manufacturers that struggled in the American car market. While their light and medium duty trucks did pretty well here, over the years, Isuzu Motors brought some strange and unusual cars, small… more»
Black Beauty: 1954 Imperial Sedan
Chairman K.T. Keller enforced a conservative design approach to Chrysler Corporation cars after World War II. This traditional and somewhat boxey post war design style had run its course by 1954, and with exciting new designs known to be… more»
Farm Find: 1956 Oldsmobile 88
This quite solid and seeming original 1956 Olds 88 four door is for sale on craigslist in Austin, Texas, though the car is actually located on the seller’s farm in Kerrville, TX. I think this is the “plain” Olds… more»
Good Project: 1976 International Scout
There have been quite a few Scouts and Broncos on Barn Finds recently that looked like they were being held together by prayers and incantations rather than solid metal. When used regularly for what they were designed to do… more»
Super Short: 1979 Ford Ranger F-150
In 1979, Ford made just over 400,000 F-150 pick up trucks in all configurations. Not too many were short bed Supercab models; in fact only 35,889 Supercabs of all bed sizes were built in two wheel drive form. This… more»
Another Sleeper: 1954 Kaiser Manhattan
By 1954, the writing was on the wall for Kaiser cars. The company could not compete with the major manufacturers, and after its initial success, its relatively high prices, the lack of a modern V-8 power plant, a small… more»
Surprising Sleeper: 1977 Dodge Aspen
Generally speaking, a “sleeper” is an ordinary car that has had an engine change, or was optioned with a performance engine, to give it a bit of extra speed, without calling attention to itself.
Strange Brew: VW Hot Rod or “Sand Rail”?
Ok, I know this is not strictly speaking a barn find. Nor is it even a garage find. But it is a fine example of American automotive home building, and I just can’t help admiring it. I hope Barn… more»
Triple Black: 1972 Mercury Marquis Brougham
If you like big American cars, and many of us do, the early-to-mid seventies Mercury Marquis, particularly in Brougham form, is a pretty nice looking representative from that era’s FoMoCo styling. While it perhaps handles a bit more like… more»
Big Blue Survivor: 1953 Oldsmobile Super 88
In 1953 Oldsmobile offered three lines of cars, the entry level 88, the slightly larger and more luxurious “midsize” Super 88, and the top of the line luxury barge 98. All Oldsmobiles that year were powered by the famous… more»
Salvagabili-T? 1947 Diamond T
When I saw this very rough looking but still beautiful Diamond T for sale on craigslist in Casa Grande, Arizona, I immediately thought of Howard, and wondered what he would have to say about this somewhat beat up and… more»
Green With EV: 1968 Karmann Ghia
This has got to be one of the coolest electric car conversion I have seen. It’s a 1968 Volkswagen Karmann Ghia, a very lightweight and fun-to-drive car to begin with, and as an electric vehicle is surely an interesting… more»
Make A Date: 1950 Oldsmobile 88
In 1949 Oldsmobile introduced its new “88” model by adding its powerful new overhead valve 303 CID V-8 to the smaller, relatively lightweight GM B-body. Some consider the Olds 88 to be the first muscle car, though doubtless that… more»
